Cable connection for tramway-cars.



H. B. BROCKENBROUGH.

CABLE GONNEGTIQN FOR TRAMWAY CABS, APPUCATION FILED sum: 12, 916*.

Patented 00s. 16,1917.

2 SHEETS S HEET I H. B; BROCKENBROUGH.

CABLE CONNECTION FOR TRAMWAY CARS.

APPLiCATIOYN FILED JUNE 12, I916.

IN. 'mmm Patented (Pet. 16, 191?.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

Egg" f 53 55372743 7% kB-Bwwwhm i fi M HUGH B. BROCKENBROUGH, 015 FORT DODGE, IOWA.

CABLE oonnncrron roe TRAM AY-cAns.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented not. 116, 11917.

Application filed June 12, 1916.. Serial No. 103,196.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, HUGH B. BRooKEN- BROUGH, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Fort Dodge, in the county of Webster and State of Iowa, have invented certain new and useful Improve ments in Cable Connections for Tramway Cars, of which the following is a specification. I i

My inventionrelates to improved connecting meansparticularly adapted for connecting tramway carswith cables. Although my invention is applicable in surface tramways it is particularly adaptable in aerialtramways, such as tramways constructed between a. loading and unloading station for receiving and dumping merchandise, suchas ore. Such systems usually comprise two parallel tracks suspended closely together with provision made for connecting the ends so that the cars can run continuously around the. circuit in one direction on one track. and in the opposite direction on the other. tracks could, of course, be connected together by curves but in order to rotate the car trucks the cars would have to be of considerable radius. This is, of course, impractical-as it would require considerable and expensive supporting framework and expensive cable arrangement at the curves, particularly in the nature of cable sheaves and supports. I provide slmphfied mechanism for shifting a car from the end of one track to theadjacent end of the other track, the arrangement being such that only a single sheave is necessary at each end for guiding the cable from one track to the other. The arrangement involves a supporting frame adapted. to shifttransversely across the main track ends, the frame supporting a platform having rails normally in line with one trackto receive a car, the tracks being carried with the:..car and frame in registration with the other track the'car being always parallel with the main tracks and traveling bodily around the cable sheave.

My invention concerns particularly the connection between acar and thecable which can readily follow the cable around the track end sheaves without causing binding, the connectionbeing also such as will readily pass through the cable driving mechanism. Generally speaking, my improved conned tion comprises a clamp to which the cable is rigidly 'andxpermanently secured and The ends of the.

into registration with the tracks which can rotate about a vertical pivot and which can swing about a horizontal pivot so as to adapt itself to various curves and positions it must take when passing around the track end sheaves with the car which remains always parallel with the tracks.

Onthe accompanying drawing the details of construction and operation of my invention are clearly shown. In these drawings Figure 1 is a'plan view showing the car shifting mechanism at one end of the tracks, Fig. 2 is a view from plane 2-2, Fig. 1, Fig. 3 is an enlarged side elevational view ofthe cable connection above the connector between the car and cable,

Fig. 4.- is, an end view of the connector showing its position when it is traveling around a sheave, and Fig. 5 is a sectional view on plane 5-5, Fig. 3. y

Describing first the arrangement for which my improved connector is particularly adaptable, in Fig. l the car shifting frame F comprises side beams 10 connected by cross beams 11, the beams 10 riding on rollers 12 mounted at the tops of posts 13. The beams 10 extend transversely of the endsof parallel tracks T and T which form part of an aerial railway. Supported on brackets 14 suspended from the beams 10 are the track rails 15., These rails travel with the car shiftingframe to be carried T and T, aweight 16 on the cable 17 passing through sheave 18 tending to hold the frame with the rails 15 in registration with the rails of track T so as to receive a car coming toward the frame ontrack T. Below the track 15 the horizontal sheave 19 is ,journaled in'the VGIiJICELlbBZlI'HIg frame 20 secured to the railway supporting structure 21, the axis of the wheel being midway between the tracks T and T- There is a sheave at each end of the main tracks T and T and about these sheaves passes a cable 22, the cable, at some point between these sheaves, being engaged-by cable driving mechanism (not shown). The sheaves are of such diameter that the cable lines pass between the rails of the tracks T and T in order that cars G be connected to the cable. Usually connection is made with the under side of the cars. vVith the car shifting arrangement shown inFigs. 1 and 2 a car is propelled by the cable from track T onto the rails 15 of the shifting frame and then the car will have a combined longitudinal movement along rails 15 and lateral movement with the shifting frame until the rails 15 are brought into registration with the track T whereupon the car'enters the track' T1, the car always remaining parallelwith the tracks T and T,

' this connector 23 represents a plate having a cylindrical "cured by nut 28.

stud 2a. extending vertically upwardly therefrom to pass through the floorjof the car C and vto be engaged by a nut 25. With this arrangement the plate 23-.is free to rotate about the axis of the stud 2 1-. Depending from oppositesides of the-plate 23 are the legs 26 through whose ends passes the horizontal pivot bolt 27 se- This bolt also receives the rip-standing ears 29 and 30 on a block or plate 31 which is received between the upperends of a sheet metal strap or frame 32 of U-shaped cross-section, the strap being secured by bolts 33. The cable22 engage-s in'the bend or bottomiof the frame .32 and is securely clamped therein in any suitablemanner. As shown, wedge mechanism is used,' a wedge block 34' passing through'th'e frame'between the lower wedge surface 35 of block 31 and the upper Wedge surface 36 of the block 37 engaging the cable 22. The wedge block has the threaded stud38extending-from its apex end beyond the edges of the frame 32 and a nut 39 engaging this stud abuts against the frame edges when turned and the cam block is drawn against the wedge surfaces 35 and 36 to securely force and press the block 37 against the cable to thus clamp the cable rigidly in'the bend of the'frame 32 The connector described can rotate about a vertical axis and swing about a horizontal axisand it can therefore readily follow the cable as it engages in the grooves 40 of the sheaves and travels'around the sheaves. It will be noted in Fig. 1 that the radius of the sheave groove bottom is shorter than the distance between the sheave axis and the center linesof tracks T and Tand the rails 15. The difference in distance is substantially the distance between the axis of pivot bolt 27 and the end of the frame .32 of the connector so that the frame can assumefa horizontal position during shiftin of the car from one track tothe other, suc hOIlZ'OlltZLl position being shown in Figs.

1, 2 and 4; WVhen thercar is traveling on the tracks T and" T the connector frame i32willhang vertical. inforder to pass readily through the cable driving mechanism but when the car is shifted between the ends of the tracks the frame assumes a more or less horizontal position in order to accurately engage in the sheave groove without binding. The frame 32 being of sheet metal will add very little thickness to the cable and consequently will not cause bumping operationshown as changes and modifications are no doubt possible which would still come within the s"0pe of the invention.

- I clarm as follows;' 7 I I 1. In a tramway, the combination of two parallel track ends,a'- frame adapted toreciprocate transversely of said ends, a' track section on said frame normally in register with one-of said trackends, a' sheave below sald frame having a 1 811310211 pivot in a plane midway between said trackends, the i i radius '-of said sheave beinga distance less than the distance from the center of the sheave to the main track'centers and to the center of the frame track, a cable passing around saidsheave, acar adapted to enter said frame track section from one ofsaid track ends,a connector pivoted to said car center fonvertical rotation and connected at its lower end withsaideable, said connector beingadapted to swing" horizontally to bridge the 'distance between the car center and the sheave peripheryand to follow the cable-around the-sheave.

2; In a tramway'system,'the combinationof I two main'track ends,-a'frame reciprocable F transversely atsaid ends, a track section on said frame normally in registrationwith'one of said main traclrends,'a horizontal sheave below said frame, {the axis of said sheave track ends, a cable engaging said sheave, a car, a connector depending from said car and secured to the cable, said car being propelled bythecable onto the frame track "being in a planemidway between the main section from one of'said rnain trackends,

said car having a I combined longitudinal movement on said" frame track section and lateral movementwith said frame to be brought into position to enter-the other main track end. i

3. A cable" connector for tram-cars comprising a plate having a vertical stud extending therefrom for securing the plate to a car bottom for'r'otation' about a vertical axis, legs depending from said plate, a horizontal pivot' bolt' secured in said legsja block having ea'rs receiving said bolt, a

U-shaped frame of 1/ sheet metal receiving said block between its ends and secured thereto, saidv block having a lower wedge surface, a block at thebottom of saidframe Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the to the car to swing about a vertical axis passing through the center line of the car, the lower part of said connector being pivoted to the upper part to swing laterally, said lower part being secured at its lower end to the cable and being of a length to bridge the distance between the track center and the sheave periphery when the car travels around the sheave- In Witness whereof I hereunto subscribe my name this 5 day of June, A. D. 1916.

HUGH B. BROCKENBROUGH.

Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. 0. 

